Jordan Zimmermann – RHP, 6-2, 225, Opening Day age: 31. He has looked as close to the All-Star caliber pitcher he was in 2013-2014 than in any point since neck, shoulder and back issues began to hamper him in 2016. Finally healthy, he has been able to get back his old mechanics, there’s life on his pitches again, and he’s developing an effective two-seam fastball, which he never had before. He’s been one of the pleasant surprises this spring. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

Michael Fulmer – RHP, 6-3, 220, Opening Day age: 25. He seems poised for a big year. The elbow issues he had late last year have been dealt with (ulnar transposition) and he has pitched exceptionally well this spring. His two-seam fastball, which he throws harder than his four-seam, is an elite pitch. He can command it to both sides of the plate. He’s changed the shape and speed of his slider, too. It’s slower, which gives him a much-needed change of speeds, and it has late horizontal break. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

Francisco Liriano – LHP, 6-2, 225, Opening Day age: 34. He can still bring a fastball at 92-93 mph and his slider and change-up are still above average pitches. What’s gone crooked the last couple of years is his command. His walks-per-nine have climbed from 3.4 in 2015 to just under 5.0 last year. He’s had to throw too many predictable pitches in fastball counts. To be fair, he’s also been bounced around the league – Pittsburgh, Toronto, Houston. Perhaps pitching every fifth day for his former manager and pitching coach (Ron Gardenhire and Rick Anderson) from his early days in Minnesota, will give him some stability. But, saying that, if he returns to form, he will likely be traded again. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

Matthew Boyd – LHP, 6-3, 215, Opening Day age: 27. You know what he’s capable of. The 8.2-inning no-hit bid last year showed what it looks like when he’s fully on his game. His tool box is loaded with an array of breaking balls, sliders and off-speed pitches that are set up by a low-90s fastball that he can throw up (four-seam) and down (two-seam) effectively. What’s eluded him to this point is consistency. He has gotten huge results from a simplified delivery. He’s got the total package -- make-up, emotional maturity and stuff. It’s exciting to see how good he can be. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

Daniel Norris – LHP, 6-2, 195, Opening Day age: 24. Regardless of which side of the Ohio-Michigan border he starts, he’s going to pitch a lot of baseball for the Tigers this season. He has done everything a person can do physically to keep himself healthy. And he’s worked tirelessly on his mechanics, so he can repeat his delivery more consistently and command his pitches. All that’s left, really, is for him to go out every five days and pitch. Let him work his way through the inevitable rough patches and let's see if they defeat him or make him stronger. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

Mike Fiers – RHP, 6-2, 200, Opening Day age: 32. Back stiffness has about ruined his first spring camp with the Tigers. He’s tried to pitch through it, but he’s been unable to get any finish on his delivery, leaving all of his pitches up in the zone. Although it’s not been talked about directly, there is a good chance he may start the season on the disabled list. Special to Detroit News

Shane Greene – RHP, 6-4, 210, Opening Day age: 29. Wouldn’t it just be Tigers luck to finally develop a lights-out closer in a year when save opportunities might be scarce. Greene certainly has the weaponry and the mentality for the job. With his mid-90s sinker and four-seam fastball, he can work hitters’ eyes up and down. Then he hits them with a Frisbee slider at 82-83 mph and it’s almost not a fair fight. It will be interesting to see how much interest he draws at the trade deadline. The Tigers flipped Justin Wilson last year for Jeimer Candelario. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

Alex Wilson – RHP, 6-0, 215, Opening Day age: 31. Don’t pay attention to the spring results. By his own admission, he’s always struggled in spring. Pay attention to the pitcher he was in 2015 and 2016 – a trustworthy, all-role guy who competes as hard as anybody in the game. He made a bid to win a starting job, but the fact that he’s stretched out to 60 pitches puts him in a good spot to work longer relief. He is the undisputed leader of the bullpen. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

Daniel Stumpf – LHP, 6-2, 206, Opening Day age: 27. Other than Greene, he may have the nastiest stuff of any reliever in the Tigers bullpen. He throws hard (93-94 mph), from a funky angle, and he’s got a hard, biting slider and a developing change-up. His arsenal is too good for him to be limited to situational lefty duty. He’s likely to be one of the late-inning set-up guys. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

Drew VerHagen – RHP, 6-6, 230, Opening Day age: 27. Once the decision was made, by former manager Brad Ausmus, that his stuff played best out of the bullpen, VerHagen has not only embraced it, he seems to be thriving in it. Late in spring, it looked like he was in line to be the right-handed late-inning set-up guy. Throwing mid-90s fastballs downhill with a tighter slider and less loopy curveball, he has been impressive. Consistency, though, still needs to be proven. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

Warwick Saupold – RHP, 6-1, 195, Opening Day age: 28. For 31 innings early last season, he was the Tigers’ best reliever -- .097 WHIP, just nine walks and a .200 opponents’ average. But from overuse and from his own over-doing it between outings, his last 31 innings were brutal (2.06 WHIP, 22 walks, .323 opponents’ average). The Tigers need him to be who he was before the All-Star break. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

Buck Farmer – RHP, 6-4, 225, Opening Day age: 27. For three seasons, the Tigers couldn’t decide what role best suited Farmer, starter or reliever. Two weeks with pitching coach Chris Bosio, and Farmer was sent to the ’pen for good. And it’s been a blessing for all parties. Going into the final week of spring, he hadn’t given up a run. His four-seam fastball was ringing in at 95-96 mph and his secondary pitches have been sharp. It’s hard to see him not making the Opening Day roster. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

Joe Jimenez – RHP, 6-3, 220, Opening Day age: 23. He never went home this off-season. He stayed in Lakeland and worked first on his body – using the team’s nutritionists and conditioning coaches, he got his weight back in order. Secondly, he revamped his mechanics, cleared his head, and got back to attacking hitters first with his upper-90s fastball, and then mixing in an improved slider and change-up. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

Johnny Barbato – RHP, 6-1, 235, Opening Day age: 25. He’s one of the few guys these days who came to camp talking about how he was happy that he put some weight back on. The last two seasons he came to camp lean and mean, and his fastball velocity dipped to the low-90s. Re-beefed this spring, the fastball was ringing 95-96. The main concern, again, is command. His walk rate per nine innings was 5.65 last season. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

C James McCann – R-R, 6-2, 235, Opening Day age: 27. It’s been a tumultuous but enriching off-season for him, with the arrival of twin boys born prematurely. He also gained some 25 pounds of muscle mass. The expectation is he will build off his productive second half last season – he hit .291 with a .345 on-base percentage after the All-Star break. He’s ever improving in terms of pitch-framing and sequencing, though he still grades low in those sabermetric categories. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

C/1B John Hicks – R-R, 6-2, 230, Opening Day age: 28. He will back up both behind the plate and at first base and give manager Ron Gardenhire some pop off the bench. Oddly, he hit 56 points better against right-handers than left-handers last season, something that screams statistical anomaly. He also struck out in 27 percent of his plate appearances last season, which is a concern. Defensively, he doesn’t get enough credit for his strong arm and quick release. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

1B Miguel Cabrera – R-R, 6-4, 240, Opening Day age: 34. He looks like he’s having fun again, and that’s a great sign. He had no fun last season, grinding through, unable to perform anywhere near his standards with two herniated disks in his back. But he spent the off-season strengthening his core muscles, stretching and improving flexibility. The early results have been encouraging. His swing is fluid again and he’s able to produce some torque and bat speed with his lower half, which he couldn’t do last year. Expect a big bounce-back here. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

SS Jose Iglesias – R-R, 5-11, 185, Opening Day age: 28. He’s at the point in his career where his maturity and emotional growth has caught up to his elite skill level. He has taken on a mentor role with the club’s young infield prospects, as well as with second baseman Dixon Machado. He’s also taken his offensive game up a notch. He had the best hard-hit rate of his career last year, though the batting average didn’t reflect. He has shown better patience at the plate this spring. There’s no reason his on-base percentage should be below .325. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

2B Dixon Machado – R-R, 6-1, 175, Opening Day age: 26. He’s waited a long time for this. Eight minor-league seasons, 789 minor-league games, two years of riding the Toledo shuttle, last season as a barely-used utility man – and finally, he has an everyday job. He’s ready. He’s been stinging the ball all spring and should be a good fit at the bottom of the order. He is still making the adjustment to the right side of the infield, especially on double-play turns, but his range is above average. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

3B Jeimer Candelario – S-R, 6-1, 210, Opening Day age: 24. By the end of spring, it appeared he had settled into the No. 2 hole in manager Ron Gardenhire’s batting order. He’s shown legitimate opposite-field power from both sides of the plate and the ability to pull the ball hard to right field batting left-handed. His poise and plate discipline belie his relative inexperience. He’s still a work in progress defensively, but he’s shown quick reflexes, especially going to his backhand, soft hands and a strong arm. He’s not miscast at the position at all. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

UT Niko Goodrum – S-R, 6-3, 198, Opening Day age: 26. There is a lot to like about this guy. Big, strong, ultra-athletic, plays the game with a football player’s tenacity. He can play everywhere around the infield, as well as the outfield. Whether he makes the team out of camp or not, it’s a safe bet that he will work his way to Detroit at some time this year. John Raoux, AP

OF Nick Castellanos – R-R, 6-4, 210, Opening Day age: 26. This is a baseball player in full bloom. He has found a comfortable home in right field, though he is still learning the intricacies of that position. And offensively, well, he picked up this spring where he left off last season. He’s hitting the ball consistently hard to all parts of the park. He has also stepped up in the clubhouse and taken on more leadership responsibilities. It may be time for Castellanos to make his first All-Star team this year. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

OF Leonys Martin – L-R, 6-2, 200, Opening Day ago: 30. Nobody needed a clean slate more than this guy. He had a miserable offensive season last year. He got bit by the launch-angle craze and got away from the hitting style that got him to the big leagues. He’s back to focusing on contact and line drives again and has been driving the ball hard all spring. He looks to be the Tigers’ leadoff hitter this year. This is a guy who stole 36 and 31 bases in back-to-back seasons for the Rangers. John Raoux, AP

OF Mikie Mahtook – R-R, 6-1, 205, Opening Day age: 28. Manager Ron Gardenhire describes Mahtook as “game-on.” And that’s about perfect. Mahtook is a throwback to a different era – a gritty, hard-nosed, no-back-down, dirt-bag type player. He established himself as an everyday player with a torrid three-month stretch last season (.299/.354/.489). A center fielder by trade, he should adapt well to the spacious left field at Comerica Park. Always with a guy who plays as hell-bent as he does, injuries are an issue. His run was cut short by a groin strain last year. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

OF JaCoby Jones – R-R, 6-2, 205, Opening Day age: 25. With a minor-league option left, the Tigers may feel it’s best to get him regular playing time at Toledo rather than being the fourth outfielder in Detroit. But Jones played well enough this spring to warrant a big-league job. His defense is big-league ready and could be used as a defensive replacement late in games in both right or left field. And he showed better plate discipline, swinging at fewer pitch up and outside the zone this spring. John Raoux, AP

OF Victor Reyes – S-R, 6-3, 170, Opening Day age: 23. The Tigers took him with the first pick in the Rule 5 draft, which means they have to keep him on the active roster or else expose him to waivers and offer him back to the Diamondbacks, for whom he never rose higher than Double A. Defensively, he can play at the big-league level, even though his arm is subpar. He has hit the ball well at levels to this point, and hit the ball reasonably well this spring. But ready or not, he will, almost certainly, be on the Opening Day roster. Lynne Sladky, AP

DH Victor Martinez – S-R, 6-2, 210, Opening Day age: 39. Fingers crossed, but the ablation procedure seems to have stabilized Martinez’s heart rate. And with a healthy heart, he was able to keep to a normal off-season workout regimen. And that has brought him to camp as physically strong as he’s been in a couple of years – which was reflected in how well he’s swung the bat this spring. This will be his 16th and final season and he seems on a mission to go out in a style befitting one of the most productive switch-hitters in the history of the game. John Raoux, AP

Manager Ron Gardenhire – First year. Opening Day age: 60. While teams around baseball this off-season hired young managers with no previous managerial experience (Aaron Boone, Gabe Kapler, Alex Cora, Mickey Callaway and Dave Martinez), the Tigers picked the wizened Gardenhire, he of more 1,000 big-league victories. And it was the right choice. The focus for now will be on building a fundamentally sound foundation, on paying attention to detail, to playing the game hard and correct – and those have been Gardenhire’s calling cards for going on three decades. Robin Buckson, Detroit News

They had Ian Kinsler at second base, with Torii Hunter, Austin Jackson, and Rajai Davis in the outfield a few weeks before a youngster named J.D. Martinez arrived. Nick Castellanos was a rookie third baseman. Andrew Romine and Eugenio Suarez were filling in at shortstop for Jose Iglesias, who was about to miss the entire year with shin issues.

The team’s catcher was Alex Avila. Its closer was Joe Nathan.

The Tigers squad that prances onto the field Thursday against the Pirates at Comerica Park has been, well, realigned.

Their second baseman will be Dixon Machado, with Jeimer Candelario at third base, Iglesias at short, Mikie Mahtook in left, Leonys Martin in center, and Castellanos – newly relocated from third base – in right field.

Their catcher will be James McCann. Their closer is Shane Greene.

This is how radically personnel can change in the span of four years, which is why any down-the-road glimpses are difficult, if not foolhardy.

But it’s a seductive exercise, staring into baseball’s crystal ball. Especially now. The Tigers are in a ground-up rebuild and will look toward their minor-league hatcheries for pitchers and players who typically form the core of any contender’s eventual prime-time players.

To get at least a vague sense for how some future, and presumably better, Tigers teams will be assembled, begin with the support-beams for any contender, its starting rotation, which was the bulwark of those division champions and two World Series teams from 2006 through 2014.

Let’s round off our prospectus with a five-year date – 2023 – which is when a team’s re-do should be somewhere close to fruition.

Alex Faedo(Photo: Robin Buckson, Detroit News)

POSSIBLE 2023 TIGERS ROTATION

1. Franklin Perez

2. Matt Manning

3. Beau Burrows

4. Gregory Soto

5. Alex Faedo

This is a long walk on thin ice for obvious reasons.

The chances all five will be in Detroit in five years is pure nonsense, based on health probabilities, washouts, and the likelihood of forthcoming trades.

Also consider that there’s a first overall draft pick arriving in June, which could easily be a pitcher, in which case said pitcher might very well be this team’s 2023 ace. There almost surely will be another early first-rounder in 2019. So be prepared for some major rotation retooling along the way.

But because Perez today is their most talented young arm, even if he will miss the early months of 2018 with a torn LAT muscle, he has a shot at sitting no worse than No. 2 five short years from now.

Manning is the most intriguing of the above contestants, thanks to an important distinction. He has the deepest reservoir of raw talent among this particular Fab Five. He could, if his development follows in all its projected glory, be The Man in 2023. On this proposition, don’t bet anything you can’t afford to lose. But it’s something to think about.

Every team needs a power left-hander in its stable and that man, for now, is Soto. Five years from now he will be 28 and could possibly have enough handle on the strike zone to be a serious presence.

Burrows would seem to be the safest of picks for Tigers clairvoyants. He is a right-handed bulldog, a man who stays healthy and chomps innings. He is a past No. 1 pick. He won’t be in Detroit until next season but could, five springs from now, be working on a handsome contract extension should all continue to go as it has gone since he signed out of high school three years ago.

Faedo, too, ranks as a percentage bet to be a Tigers rotation plow-horse. He was last June’s first-round pick and is sprucing up for his first full year of pro baseball, which looks as if it will begin at Single A Lakeland. It is such players and timetables that make thoughts about the future defensible.

Other prospects who might in 2023 replace any of the above: Kyle Funkhouser, Austin Sodders, Wilkel Hernandez, Gio Arriera, Elvin Rodriguez, and Dane Myers, Anthony Castro, or even Matt Hall.

Gerson Moreno(Photo: Robin Buckson, Detroit News)

POSSIBLE 2023 TIGERS BULLPEN

Relievers are more difficult to consider, given their volatility and mobility. But in the short term, if not necessarily in 2023, you can gather at least a small bucket of names to mull.

Joe Jimenez, who by 2023 should be an upcoming free agent, could conceivably be working yet as Tigers closer.

Gerson Moreno has a fierce back-end arm and might be aboard.

Bryan Garcia is now healing from Tommy John surgery, which means he won’t begin pitching until sometime in 2019. In terms of service time and his superb right arm, he sticks as a ’23 nominee for a big late-innings role.

Mark Ecker and Zac Houston must be considered. So, too, might Eduardo Jimenez, as well as Tom de Blok. Any could find their way into the mix, as could John Schreiber, to say nothing of 20 additional kids now firing away on the farm.

TIGERS POSITION POSSIBILITIES

This is where potential events turn doubly interesting, and triply difficult to base any solid guesses. But we’ll try.

FIRST BASE

We will assume, by 2023, when Miguel Cabrera is a month from his 40th birthday, that he no longer will be a national landmark at first. If he remains in Detroit, he by then will be a designated hitter.

Therefore, first base figures to be wide open in a few seasons. It makes sense that a player now unknown to the Tigers galaxy will five years from now be stationed at first. Very possibly, it will be a player netted in a trade, or through free agency. Maybe it’s one of these early draft picks the Tigers will be expending for a few years.

It could be Christin Stewart, the left-handed power-pack who for now is working as a left-fielder. What if he pulls a reverse of the Castellanos experience and moves from the outfield to a corner infield post, opposite of where Castellanos once roamed?

There could also be a move to a potentially talented and powerful left-handed hitter, Jose Quero. But that’s only going to happen if Quero alters a body that looks as if it’s moving toward Prince Fielder dimensions. Quero is 19 and has wonderful upside. But he must streamline that 6-foot frame.

Dawel Lugo(Photo: Robin Buckson, Detroit News)

SECOND BASE

This is another blindfolded stroll down Roster Street.

Dixon Machado, for now, is the Tigers’ second-sacker. He is young. But it’s unlikely he’ll be there in five years. Nor is it realistic to consider Dawel Lugo will be the long-term answer.

It could be a surprise prospect: Josh King, who was part of last summer’s trade for J.D. Martinez. Or, it’s possible that Anthony Pereira, who is 21 and who has some substance, could play his way into the scheme.

SHORTSTOP

The easy pick is Isaac Paredes, now perhaps the best-hitting young prospect in the Tigers chain. One problem, and only one problem: Paredes carries too much weight for short. Unless he begins considering menu options that don’t gravitate toward carbohydrates, Paredes won’t have the mobility to work the toughest spot on a big-league infield.

Isaac Paredes(Photo: Robin Buckson, Detroit News)

It’s possible the Tigers, by then, will have their man in teenager Wenceel Perez, a lofty signing out of the Dominican Republic. He is a switch-hitter, only 18, and has batted well in the early going, which surprises no one.

Or, another to carefully inspect in 2018: Alvaro Gonzalez, who was handed $1 million last season as a 17-year-old Venezuelan, all in a bid to someday bring him to Detroit.

Do not be surprised if the draft, either this year or next, contributes a name or two for the most critical position on a big-league diamond. The Tigers need more bodies, and more talent, in the pipeline.

But if you’re a fan of promising odds, Gonzalez might be your guy.

THIRD BASE

This could be Jeimer Candelario, who might yet be wearing Tigers stripes five years after he arrived as a Tigers regular.

It could be Paredes if he doesn’t switch to a bit more fish, vegetables, and fruits at the team dining table. The issue in any move to third is that Paredes must swing a bat that supports the position. He might indeed become that brand of hitter: a powerful, run-producing machine who can handle the reduced range at third.

But that’s perhaps banking on too much good fortune.

Within the Tigers constellation, third base is one of those distant stars, fuzzy and indecipherable. Ryan Karstetter, a draft grab last June, could have a shot.

OUTFIELD

Now one sees why this Tigers rebuild is somewhere on the level of the Mackinac Bridge project of the 1950s. A lot of construction lay ahead. And the water’s getting deep as a scary 2018 arrives.

Begin with center field and with the demand last August that Daz Cameron be part of the Justin Verlander deal with Houston. The Tigers had no serious center-field prospects beyond Cameron. Derek Hill presumably is a contender there, but his bat isn’t likely to make him more than an option as a defensive fill-in, if a former first-round pick makes it to the big leagues.

Mike Gerber can play anywhere in the outfield. And he swings a respectable left-handed bat. Will he bring the offense that makes him a fixture, say, at a corner spot or in center? We’ll get a hint soon enough, since it’s a safe wager Gerber will be in Detroit at some point this season.

Stewart, Gerber, Cameron – you can make an on-paper case for those three. You might also see last year’s second-round pick, Reynaldo Rivera, resurrect after a brutal first summer and bust loose with his big body (6-foot-6) and left-handed bat to become a mid-order machine in right field.

It’s possible, also, that Cam Gibson, who continues to push his way up the farm-system’s corridors could also find a place in Detroit, even as a bench handyman.

But add outfield to a probable Tigers shopping list as they re-stock the farm and ponder moves in seasons ahead. Outfield is at the heart of a team’s offense. The Tigers need a batch of game-changing bats.

Jake Rogers(Photo: Robin Buckson, Detroit News)

CATCHER

Ironically, one of big-league baseball’s toughest areas to stock USDA-certified flesh, catcher, happens to be a Tigers strong suit.

It began a decade ago when the Tigers nabbed Alex Avila and found in a fifth-round pick a future All-Star and starter. They added Bryan Holaday, who has been a backup for assorted teams. They drafted Rob Brantly and watched him become a blue chip in their trade for Anibal Sanchez.

Two more drafted catchers, Curt Casali and Kade Scivicque, were dealt to teams that found them handy in swaps with Detroit.

The Tigers drafted current starter James McCann. They have in the hopper Grayson Greiner, who might or might not prove to be big-league material, as well as hotshot prospect Sam McMillan, whom they bought away from his University of Florida scholarship.

They got skilled Jake Rogers in the Verlander deal. They also have a prodigy in 19-year-old, switch-hitting Gresuan Silverio, in whom they invested big money by international signing standards: $300,000 to pry him from the Dominican Republic.

So, this is inspiring from the Tigers’ view – that they have such pleasing inventory at a position of need – even if it makes for tough prognostication in 2018.

The Tigers will see how the catchers’ bats evolve. What seems safe to say today, as safe as it gets in plotting future rosters, is that their 2023 starter will be one of their in-house apprentices. They’ll wait and see how Rogers, Silverio, and McMillan fare, no doubt while adding more catchers along the way, which has become one of the Tigers’ healthier habits.

DESIGNATED HITTER

This would make for a good Tigers website contest. Who will be the Tigers’ designated hitter once Miguel Cabrera heads for his lavish retirement?

What we know is that any such scion will almost certainly arrive after 2023, given that Cabrera’s contract runs, minimally, through the ‘23 season. Assuming his formerly aching back and his zest for baseball cooperate, he will be swinging that blur of a bat for another six seasons.

That’s a forecast the Tigers can, of course, accept. They’ll have other positions to decide, open for bids in these coming years of reconstruction, during which Cabrera figures to be a constant.

What he and the Tigers hope is that by Opening Day, 2023, other stars will have joined him. If that’s the case, this Tigers reclamation process, now under way, might be considered a wait that was worthwhile.